Bobby Lashley officially signs for TNA Wrestling

EdK

FORMER WRESTLING WORLD CHAMPION BOBBY LASHLEY JOINS TOTAL NONSTOP ACTION (TNA) WRESTLING.

HISTORIC SIGNING MAKES LASHLEY THE FIRST EVER ACTIVE MMA FIGHTER TO CONCURRENTLY COMPETE IN PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING.

Bobby Lashley has signed a contract with Total Nonstop Action (TNA) Wrestling, making him the first-ever active pro wrestler in the western world to simultaneously compete as an active MMA fighter. He made the announcement on various ESPN interviews in New York.

“I want to do both because I can. TNA is giving me the opportunity to compete in both sports which I have a passion for,” said Lashley. “I will bring MMA fans to wrestling and wrestling fans to MMA”.

“This is a great opportunity for Bobby to do something that has never been done before. He is the perfect ambassador for both sports. We are excited to have him join TNA, he is a true star that brings so much to the table as a member of our roster,” stated TNA President Dixie Carter.

Prior to signing with TNA and fighting in MMA, Lashley was a two time ECW World Champion while in the WWE. During this time, he headlined many world wide pay-per-views and quickly became one of the most exciting stars in professional wrestling. As a collegiate wrestler, Lashley made a name for himself winning three national amateur wrestling championships. Since his MMA debut last December, Lashley has dominated each of his four fights and is currently undefeated with a record of 4-0. His most recent victory over Bob Sapp on June 27, 2009 ended via submission in round one.

Lashley first appeared for TNA in Philadelphia at the “Lockdown” pay-per-view event in April 2009 to the surprise of many TNA fans, followed only by a brief appearance on TNA iMPACT! Since then, fans have been left wondering when and if he would return to TNA as a full time member of the roster. “It’s our intention to make history and we’re looking forward to having Bobby make an immediate impact in TNA,” stated Carter.

Lashley appeared on New York 1050 (ESPN) shows "Brandon Tierney" and "Lundberg Doin' Work" to discuss the news of his TNA signing. You can listen to the audio from both broadcasts below:



For more information on New York 1050 (ESPN), click on the following links:

New York 1050 - ESPN: Brandon Tierney and Lundberg Doin' Work
http://stations.espn.go.com/stations/1050espnradio/archive?id=3377146

New York 1050 - ESPN: Lundberg Doin' Work
http://stations.espn.go.com/stations/1050espnradio/archive?id=4207935

Can't see how he expects a UFC call with commitments like that. His MMA career will suffer from this.

the flananator

I guess he figured UFC had no interest (and after 4 fights, if they hadn't made him an offer by then perhaps they never would. Lashley has bills to pay and I would imagine TNA are going topay him a lot).

This is a good thing for TNA, I feel. They need a top babyface under the age of 40 to face the MEM, and Lashley could fit that bill. I mean...he's a **** worker and a **** talker, but if booked right maybe he could get over? Batista did. I wish him luck.

Otis Driftwood

Interesting.Always felt Lashley had the right look to succeed in WWE and am surprised he didnt.

I guess it depends on how he is used in TNA.

JP Liz

Is he debuting at Victory Road?

I hope he aint Samoa Joe mystery man

dlofnep

HISTORIC SIGNING MAKES LASHLEY THE FIRST EVER ACTIVE MMA FIGHTER TO CONCURRENTLY COMPETE IN PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING.

Incorrect.

slicus ricus

dlofnep wrote: »

Incorrect.

Do explain.....?

dlofnep

slicus ricus wrote: »

Do explain.....?

He is not the first active MMA fighter to concurrently compete in professional wrestling.

Ken Shamrock competed in Pancrase and professional wrestling at the same time. So did Sakuraba, Mark Coleman, Kevin Randleman, Naoya Ogawa... I'll be here all day if I have to list out the people who have competed in MMA and professional wrestling at the same time.

Heck, he's not even the first active MMA fighter to compete in TNA. Frank Trigg had a match against AJ Styles and is still competing in MMA.

Jolt2007

Does this mean we'll finally learn what he was pointing at a few months ago?

Penn

JP Liz wrote: »

Is he debuting at Victory Road?

I hope he aint Samoa Joe mystery man

I'm pretty sure thats

Tazz

. Whoever has been with Joe has been mentoring him. Not the kind of thing I see Lashley doing

CMpunked

Jolt2007 wrote: »

Does this mean we'll finally learn what he was pointing at a few months ago?

He was trying to cause a distraction.

As in the wrestlemania sign point, except he assumed people would look away and then he would disappear, but no one looked away so he just kept standing.. pointing..

the flananator

I retract my comment about Lashley being crap in the ring. I just watched his GAB bout with John Cena there, and he wasn't crap. He wasn't crap at all.

jayoo

Good on him, at the end of the day cash is cash, and cash equals security,

flahavaj

the flananator wrote: »

I retract my comment about Lashley being crap in the ring. I just watched his GAB bout with John Cena there, and he wasn't crap. He wasn't crap at all.

Probably his best match. Of course the Cena haters would never admit that.:pac:

Rjd2

flahavaj wrote: »

Probably his best match. Of course the Cena haters would never admit that.:pac:

That was a time when Cena was consistently delivering quality matches in the ring as well. He made Khali look decent that year twice, and had probably the best LMS match of the last few years with Umanga. Then he had to wrestle Kennedy....:(